Social scientists call them “boomerangers”
— young adults who move in with parents after living away from home.
This recession has produced a bumper crop. And now, perhaps a sign of
the times, the hottest comic strip on the funny pages this new year may be about an unmarried, unemployed 23-year-old who lives at home with his parents.
According to the National Survey of
Households and Families, ten percent of all children over the age of 25
now live with their parents. A recent survey by the Pew Research Center
found that 13% of parents with grown children say one of their adult
sons or daughters has moved back home in the past year. Even more
shocking is that one third of all American men between the ages of 22
and 34 still live with their parents, an increase of 100 percent in the
last two decades, according to the Census Bureau.
The new cartoon called Dustin, by
well-known political cartoonists Steve Kelley and Jeff Parker, made its
debut this week in more than 60 newspapers. In one of the first strips,
Dustin’s father offers some fatherly advice: “You know Dustin, if you
spend your time lying on the coach and watching TV….you’ll never find a
regular five-to-nine job.” Dustin responds, “Promise?”
Just a decade or three ago, young
adults living at home were doomed to no-growth careers. Men living at
home were considered momma boys and losers, women were old maids.
Time’s are a-changin’.
To learn more about Boomerang Kids, click here for a free download of a chapter from Geeks, Geezers, and Googlization.
